@PaigeLynn Navigate to your nodebb folder in the console/command prompt, then type ./nodebb restart

I got Mongo finally and now Im having this issues error: NodeBB could not connect to your Mongo database. Mongo returned the following error MongoError: Authentication failed. at /home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:581:63 at authenticateStragglers (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:504:16) at Connection.messageHandler (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:540:5) at emitMessageHandler (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/connection.js:310:10) at Socket.<anonymous> (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/connection.js:453:17) at Socket.emit (events.js:198:13) at addChunk (_stream_readable.js:288:12) at readableAddChunk (_stream_readable.js:269:11) at Socket.Readable.push (_stream_readable.js:224:10) at TCP.onStreamRead [as _originalOnread] (internal/stream_base_commons.js:94:17) 2019-08-12T16:15:24.766Z [4280] - warn: NodeBB Setup Aborted. MongoError: Authentication failed. at /home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:581:63 at authenticateStragglers (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:504:16) at Connection.messageHandler (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/pool.js:540:5) at emitMessageHandler (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/connection.js:310:10) at Socket.<anonymous> (/home/ubuntu/nodebb/node_modules/mongodb/node_modules/mongodb-core/lib/connection/connection.js:453:17) at Socket.emit (events.js:198:13) at addChunk (_stream_readable.js:288:12) at readableAddChunk (_stream_readable.js:269:11) at Socket.Readable.push (_stream_readable.js:224:10) at TCP.onStreamRead [as _originalOnread] (internal/stream_base_commons.js:94:17)

Now this has happened on both AWS AND DIGITAL OCEAN so I be followed these steps step by step so either I'm stupid and can't follow directions or something's missing that I'm not able to connect with

You have managed to mess up the file permissions in the NodeBB directory. You should always execute ./nodebb, npm, and git commands under the same unprivileged user, which means no sudo. You will need to recursively chown the nodebb directory back over to whatever unprivileged user should own it. What upgrade instructions are you trying to follow?

Not AWS specific but maybe this is what you're looking for? Should be able to get you there. Hell's bells... No clue why that link a'la old school markdown syntax is broken. Try this: https://docs.nodebb.org/installing/os/ubuntu/